SCA orders high court to hear Mafoko-SABC case afresh

Repayment of profit should be 'just and equitable'

- By Mzwandile kaBizokwakhe

A court order that Mafoko Security Patrol repay all profits from an SABC contract has been set aside.

The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has set aside an order that would have forced Mafoko Security Patrols to repay all profits earned from an invalid SABC contract, sending the matter back to the high court to determine a “just and equitable” remedy.

On Friday, the SCA ruled that the Johannesburg High Court erred in law by applying a rigid “no loss, no gain” principle, which automatically precluded a blameless tenderer from retaining profit, even for services rendered over many years.

The case centres on a security services tender awarded by the interim SABC board to Mafoko on June 30, 2017.

This was despite internal committees recommending that the contract be awarded to Mjayeli Security, which had submitted a higher-scoring and cheaper bid.

Mjayeli successfully challenged the award, and the high court, in a ruling delivered in October 2023, declared the tender unlawful.